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2 Sheets Sheet 1.

(No Model.) .7

W. H. FERGUSON. BACK FOR GI DER PRESSES.

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(N0 Moau 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

W. H. FERGUSON.

' RACK FOR CIDER PRESSES.

No. 294,023. Patented Feb. 26, 1884.

N. PETms Phux -Lnm m her. Washimm D.C

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WVILLIAM H. FERGUSON, VOORHEESVILLE, NEW YORK.

RACK FOR CIDER-PRESSES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 294,023, dated February 26, 1884.

- Application filed June 4, 1883. No model.) I

To-ctZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM H. FERGU- soN, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Voorheesville, in the county of Albany and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Racks for Gider-Presses, of which the following is aspecification. j,

My invention relates to improvements in racks for cider-presses, which racks are made uniformly with substantially the same dimensions and with a squared form of slats, and provided each with side rails, which are hinged to two oppositely-located edges, and transverse edge rails, which are adapted to be secured at the ends to the ends of the hinged rails.

The objects of my invention are, first, to

provide a rack which will have hinged to two of its oppositely-located edges rails which will be adapted to be set-at will-in either horizontal or vertical positions in relation to the rack, and have temporarily a secure connection-when in vertical positionwith transversely-arranged side rails, whereby the use of solid forms or curbs for supporting the straining-cloths and retention of the pomace on the racks will be dispensed with, and an operator will be enabled, without the aid of others, to arrange the racks one above the other and form each successive layer of the cheese squarely and vertically over the preceding layers without disturbance of the straining-cloths; second, to combine with a square slat-rack, having at two of its oppositely-located edges hinged side rails which are adapted to be turned to either horizontal or vertical positions at will, two other side rails which will be separate and independent of the hinged rails, and arranged transversely to the same whenv in position for service, and provided with mechanism by which each said transverse rail will operate to hold the hinged rails in a vertical position, and be itself supported in the same position, with the lower edges of all-the side rails at a distance above the plane of the upper horizontal surface of the rack, whereby the straining-cloths and pomace will be retained on the rack, and portions of the juice of the pomace will be permitted to freely escape all around from the openings formed between them at the marginal edges of the upper surface of the rack and lower edges of the rails; third, to combine with a square slat-rack two hinged rails, each .at an oppositely-located edge of the rack, and

two transverse rails at the other two oppositely-located edges of the same, and mechanism by which the ends of these rails will be secured temporarily together at will, and enable an operator to remove said rails from against the edges of a layer of pomace or the cloth supporting the same fourth, to provide a combination and arrangement of a series of two or more slat-racks, which are each made with about the same dimensions and with square forms, and having rails hinged to two opposite side edges, and removable rails which are adapted to be used interchangeably with all the racks in the series, and have secure temporary connection with the hinged side rails, whereby the-use of solid forms or curbs will be dispensed with in building up a cheese of several layers, and each preceding rack and its side rails will serve as a foundation for the next succeeding rack, and enable the operator to readily lay up the several layers squarely with each other in all their vertical extension without the use of guidingposts, as heretofore required. I attain these objects by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which there are seven figures illustrating my invention, in all of which the same designation of parts by letterreference is used.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 represents a horizontal view from above of my improved press rack with folding .side rails turned down. Fig. 2 is aside elevation of a removable rail employed with the rack. Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the rack with its side rails turned up, and with a removable rail in place with the rack. Fig. 4 is a plan view of the same. Fig. 5 is a sectional eleva tion illustrating the manner in which several racks are arranged in relation to each other when the cheese is being formed. Fig. 6 is. a perspective view illustrating the same. Fig. 7 is a plan view of a modification of construction of the rack which may be employed.

In the drawings, A represents my improved cider-press rack,wh ich is composed of a series of slats of wood, a a, secured to batten-strips b b by screws, rivets, or nails, and folding side rails, AA, secured by hinges c c to the opposite sides of the body proper of the rack, so as to be adapted to be folded up from a horizontal position (shown in Fig. 1) to a vertical position, as shown in Figs. 3, 5, and 6.

B B are removable side rails, formed of wood, with a depth equal to about one-half the height of the top edge surface of the hinged side rails (when turned up) from the line of the horizontal plane of the top surface of the slats a ofthe rack, (which in practice I prefer to make about five inches,) with the removc ble side rails having a depth of about two and one-half inches. The objects of these proportions I will hereinafter describe. These removable rails B are each provided with notches eone at each endas shown in Fig. 2. These notches I prefer to form by firmly securinga heavy band-iron strap, d, to the upper edge of rail B, with a considerable length thereof eXtending outward past the ends of this rail, to which extended portion a piece, B, is secured, so as to be at a short distance from the end surface of the rail, and thereby form notch c. This bandiron strap (1 and wood piece B form, in fact, at each end a hook which is adapted to engage-with a hinged side rail, A, when it is turned up, as illustrated in Fig. 8, by notch 6 receiving the side rail, A. A hook made e11-' tirely of metal may be employed in lieu thereof, if preferred.

Secured to the outer or lower sides of the hinged rails A of the rack are cleats f, which operate as stops to prevent the removable rails from being shoved outward by the pressure of the cheese within. These racks in their body proper are made from their outer edges of battens I) b, with a length equal to the extension of the battens in a transverse direction, for the purpose which I will hereinafter explain.

The manner in which my improved rack is operated and its parts operate for effecting the purposes of my invention is as follows: A rack, A, is first placed and adjusted on floor F of the press, when the operator will turn up the hinged rails A A, as shown in Figs. 3 and 5, when the removable rails B-one at each en d will hook in place transversely to the hinged side rails and engage with the same, as illustrated in the same figures, with notches e 6 receiving the side rails, A A, at cleats f,with end pieces, B, bearing against said cleats, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, when the operator will press ends B downward, to cause them to bite against the outer side of rails A and hold the rails'from shifting inward. The cloths 0 will then be placed in position in the manner practiced by the trade, when the chamber-room between the hinged rails and removable rails will be evenly filled with the ground apple or pomace to the plane of the top edges of said rails. The ends of the cloth hanging over the rails (all around) will then be turned inward.

are formed.

A second rack, A, will then be placed in po sition on the first rack in a transverse manner, with the battens b of the second rack resting on the top edges of the hinged rails A of the first rack, when the hinged rails of the second rack will be turned up and the removable rails of the first rack will be removed therefrom (by their being lifted up verticallyuntil the notches or hooks e c are freed from the hinged rails of said first rack) and placed'in position, hooked as before, with the hinged rails of the rack, when cloths C will be arranged within. This second rack thus railed about will then be filled with pomace, and the cloths will be turned back and over the same. A third rack will then be placed in position over the second rack and transversely to the same, and the same manner of proceeding will be had as before. In this manner the operator will arrange the racks and the parts thereof and the cloths until the whole number of layers of the cheese I would here remark that after the second rack has been placed and properly adjusted on the first rack, and the removable rails of the first rack have been transferred to the second rack and hooked with the hinged rails thereof, the hinged rails will be turned down, as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 5, and when this has been done the cloth of the edges of the first layer of the cheese will be exposed all around, and the same exposure of the cloth of the second and the succeeding layers of the cheese will be had when the hinged rails of each rack have been turned down.

In Fig. 7 is shown a modification of my improved rack, in which side rails, B B are hinged to the two opposite edges of the rack transversely to that of hinged rails A A. In this modification hinged rails B are provided with hooks e, pivoted to the outer sides, as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 7, and side rails, A A, are provided with staples or eyes 0 as shown. WVith this form of construction each rack will of necessity have the transverse rails permanently secured to it.

In my improvements each preceding rack is made to operate as a foundation for the support of the next succeeding rack until properly placed and adjusted. I am thus enabled to build up each succeeding layer squarely with the preceding ones without employing guiding-pieces; and I also obviate all liability of the cloth covering the preceding layer being disturbed by any movement of the rack next placed over the layer, as the slats of the adjusted rack will find support on the layer below as soon as the hinged rails of the rack below have been turned down.

Another great advantage is that I secure an opening-all aroundbetween the top surface of the marginal edges of the racks and the lower edges of the hinged and removable side rails through which the apple-juice or cider will readily escape and run off as it is strained through cloth C while the pomace is being introduced, which escape of the juice from the IIO edges of the layers is prevented by the solid forms or curbs heretofore employed with racks and cloths in the laying up of the layers of the cheese.

Another great advantage is that one person can readily place and adjust the racks and their rails and their cloths, and lay up the several layers of the cheese, without aid from to as to be adaptedto be turned from horizonanother.

Another advantage obtained by my improvements over the use of detachable solid forms or curbs with racks and cloths as heretofore employed in building up a cheese is that when the first rack is properly placed the placing of all the other racks will of necessity be con trolled by the first rack, and the side rails of each succeeding rack will of necessity be on the same vertical line to which the side rails of the preceding or first racks were set.

The hinges of side rails, A A, may be protected from'undue strain or liability of injury in being turned down past a horizontal position' by extending batten-strips b I) out past the outermost slats of the rack, so that the projecting ends of the battens will support the hinged rails when turned down. In such a case cleat-stops f will be omitted, and a shallow notch or recess (made in the upper edges of the hinged rails at near their ends) may be substituted for the said cleat-stops to prevent the removable rails from being shoved outward; orjstop-blocks may be secured to the upper edges of these hinged rails at near their ends for the same purpose.

Having described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, 1s-

1. A rack for cider presses, composed of slats or bars arranged in a square series, and provided with two oppositely-located hinged rails, which are adapted to be turned alternately to vertical and horizontal positions in relation to the rack, and be temporarily secured in vertical positions by means of other side rails which are transversely arranged with the rack, for temporarily supporting the outer portions of the strainingcloths of a layer of cheese, and for the retention of the pomace on the rack, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination, with a cider-press rack which is provided at two of its oppositely-l0- cated edges thereof with rails so hinged there tal' positions to vertical ones and the reverse, of two rails which are separate from and independent of said hinged rails, and adapted to be secured transversely to the hinged side rails, so that the hinged rails and these transversely-arranged rails will be made to temporarily support each other in a vertical position, as and for the purposes set forth.

3. The combination, with rack A, made with a square form and composed of slats, of rails A A, hinged to two oppositely-located edges of the rack, transversely-arranged rail'sB B, or their described equivalents, which are removablefrom connection with rails A A, and mechanism by which the ends of said hinged rails and transversely-arranged rails will be securely connected at will, for the purposes set forth.

4. The means for holding straining-cloths and pomace in forming the several layers of a cheese in a cider-press, consisting of the combination and arrangement of two or more slatracks, A, made with uniformly the same dimensions and squared form, and each provided at two oppositely-located edges with hinged rails A A and the removablerails B B,adapted to be used interchangeably with each rack and its hinged rails, and having secure temporary connection with said hinged rails, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

WILLIAM H. FERGUSON. 

